Skogafoss is one of Iceland’s most majestic waterfalls, a thundering curtain of water plunging 60 meters from the cliffs of the former coastline with a width that stretches an impressive 25 meters across. The sheer volume and force of the cascade generates a perpetual cloud of spray that, on sunny days, produces one and sometimes two brilliant rainbows arching across the base of the falls, creating what may be the most photographed scene on Iceland’s entire South Coast.

According to Viking legend, the first Norse settler in the area, Thrasi Thorolfsson, hid a chest of gold behind the waterfall, and while the treasure has never been found, a ring reportedly recovered from nearby now resides in the Skogar Folk Museum. A steep staircase of 527 steps climbs alongside the waterfall to a viewing platform at the top, where the panorama extends across the black sand coastline to the distant Westman Islands. This is also the starting point of the famous Fimmvorduhals hiking trail, which crosses the highland pass between the Eyjafjallajokull and Myrdalsjokull glaciers.

Pro tip: Visit during the midnight sun period in June for an extraordinary experience of having the falls almost entirely to yourself bathed in golden light. If you are up for a serious hike, the first few kilometers of the Fimmvorduhals trail from the top of the falls pass over two dozen additional waterfalls and offer some of Iceland’s most dramatic scenery.